1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to eradicating foreign bodies from a host. In particular, at least some embodiments of the present invention relate to systems and methods for eliminating fleas, lice and other foreign bodies from humans, animals and/or other hosts where such foreign bodies reside.
2. Background and Related Art
Dealing with lice, fleas, and other similar pests can be enervating, annoying, and sometimes even threatening to one's health. Specifically, lice (singular: louse) are an order of over 3000 species of wingless parasitic insects and are ectoparasites of mammals and birds. In a human, the head louse lives among hairs and feeds on extremely small amounts of blood drawn from the scalp. The eggs (nits) of the head louse are white and can be seen with the naked eye. Lice are a problem, especially for children ages three to twelve years of age, and for girls more often than boys. The bites cause a scalp to unnervingly itch and become inflamed. In fact, persistent scratching results in skin irritation and even infection. Lice do not spread disease, but they are contagious. They can be contracted through brief skin contact, and also by borrowing ‘contaminated’ clothes and towels. Lice are detected by noticing itchiness and when looking at a lice-infested scalp, small grains attached to the hair roots on the head are visible, as well as by red, itchy spots.
Lice are problematic in school-age children because a child with lice is usually sent home from school. This embarrasses the child and his or her parents, and compromises the child's learning for the missed days. Additionally, lice are becoming resistant to traditional remedial techniques and medications, which further compromises school attendance and consumes the time of school nurses, school officials, and parents.
Many products currently available to eliminate lice are insecticides, so special care is required to reduce risk of toxicity. Additionally, combing the hair with nit combs or fine-toothed combs, or physically picking out the nits may also be necessary. Moreover, most infestations of lice require vigilant and ongoing cleaning of the house, clothes, bed linen, couch covers, towels, etc. Such actions might be repeated and necessary for as much as three weeks post infestation.
Unfortunately, lice are becoming resistant to even the strongest medications and treatments. For instance, the effectiveness of one popular product used to eradicate lice was investigated by the Harvard School of Public Health. Studies found that according to entomologists, the molecules in permethrin and pyrethrin, two components of this popular lice medication, were so similar that crossover resistance was almost certain.
Fleas are similarly problematic. Fleas are wingless, jumping parasites which, like mosquitoes and lice, feed on blood. Fleas, in contrast, are spread mainly through pets. A human may get fleas and becomes aware of them because a flea bite is painful and quickly starts to itch. Because fleas cannot fly, bites appear mostly around the ankles and are recognized by small red blotches on the skin. Similar to lice, ridding a host of fleas requires diligence, patience, and time, typically require several weeks of effort and treatment.
While techniques currently exist that are used to treat individuals for dealing with lice, fleas, and other similar pests, challenges still exist. Accordingly, it would be an improvement in the art to augment or even replace current techniques with other techniques.